The present invention relates to a device for guiding the bolt rope of a sail.
This invention particularly applies to the preguidance of a leech rope, for example that of a mainsail or jib, before its introduction into the slot of a mast or of a jib winder.
Known bolt rope preguides usually take the form of a rigid crescent-shaped part, its central portion being connected to a supporting member and its ends separated by a distance greater than the thickness of the sail so that the sail can run between its ends, and less than the thickness of the bolt rope so that the bolt rope cannot escape from the preguide when the sail is being run through it.
In order to feed the bolt rope into the preguide, therefore, one of its ends has to be inserted through the preguide. A major drawback with such devices is therefore the fact that when the user is hoisting his sail under conditions in which the loads are large (such as a strong wind), or when the bolt rope is in poor condition, and the rope escapes from the preguide, the user has to lower his sail completely to find the end of the bolt rope, pass this end back through the preguide and hoist the sail again.
The technical problem to be solved is how to provide a bolt rope preguide allowing rapid engagement and disengagement onto and off the bolt rope, at any point along the length of the latter.